Want to hear Karen speak in your town? Great! In fact, you can help make it happen. Let’s start by getting one of Karen’s books and a Speaking Information Packet to whoever is in charge of planning events for your church, company, or community. (Who knows? Maybe it’s you!)

Continue reading to complete a simple form and get an Information Packet into the hands of the right folks!

What if something as simple as keeping a journal could help you be a more effective parent? I wrote about this very cool parenting tool in a blog post for LearningRx. Click on the link below to find out why this works:

It was hard to decide on a title for this post. The choices are just too rich.

But before I tell you about the marijuana, I have a question:

Who are we, really?

I’m not asking what we’re like when we’re feeling composed and in charge and we can pretty much act any way we choose. I’m talking about the very core of us, the part that shows up …

…When we’re tired or grumpy.

…When we’re running late and we’ve been stuck in traffic for 45 minutes.

…When we’re already feeling frazzled and someone decides to get on our last nerve.

…When we’re utterly overwhelmed.

…When we’re in chaos or trouble.

…And maybe even when we’re really loopy because we recently had surgery and stopped eating, so doctors gave us pills to make us hungry and those pills happened to be munchie-inducing synthetic marijuana, and we accidentally got really high.

There’s something about raising children (especially teenagers!) that can put a mom-heart through the ringer.

I’ve rarely longed for anything as much as I’ve longed for my daughters to thrive in every area of life. In their relationships. In their emotions. In their bodies. In their careers and passions. In their thoughts and beliefs.

So when you’ve got a kid who feels unmotivated, frustrated, and stuck, you both feel that pain.

That’s where I found myself six years ago. My daughter Kacie, then 16, was struggling in every area. Previously a good student, Kacie had decided that classes, reading, learning, and especially college were simply beyond her. She told me she couldn’t remember anything she learned in class anyway, so why even try? She added that she hated school, hated reading, and thought learning was a waste of time.

I met John Emile Bouchard in church youth group in the early ’70s. I was 14 and he was 16. We were friends, but weren’t sweet on each other until after he joined the Navy at 17. In boot camp and on various ships, he kept my picture taped above his bunk. Continue reading “How I Met the Man of My Dreams (Twice)”→

My dad had emergency surgery 40 days ago. He is still really sick. Sometimes the doctors tell us he is dying, sometimes they tell us he will pull through. My sisters are really great at doing medical research on the internet and telling the hospital staff how they should be doing their jobs. Actually, sometimes my sisters come up with pretty impressive stuff, like music that stimulates the brain, aromatherapy, a Continue reading “How Precious Are You, Really?”→